Brownsville

Brownsville, city, seat (1848) of Cameron county, extreme southern Texas, U.S. It lies along the Rio Grande opposite Matamoros, Mexico, 22 miles (35 km) from the river’s mouth. With Harlingen and San Benito it forms an industrial, agribusiness, and port complex. On March 28, 1846, General Zachary Taylor placed the U.S. flag on the site (then part of Matamoros) and constructed a fort. Taylor’s arrival signaled the start of the Mexican War, which began in...